Sometimes the best way to illustrate absurdity is by being absurd. Sometimes the best way to protest something is through parody. Songwriter, producer, singer, and performer Dustin Christensen does both in a new song he’s released randomly under the pseudonym Dean Summerwind called “Parked By The Lake.” And with all deference to Steve Goodman, it just might be the perfect country and western song.

The former frontman of the rock group Jerrytown, and a current member of the bluegrass gospel project The Lower Lights, Dustin Christensen is a journeyman in the music business, and a jack of all trades, working as a songwriter signed to Carnival Music, a producer on other projects, and even once auditioned and competed on The Voice.

But his efforts may have not resonated any stronger than when he released this ridiculous modern country parody song that has since taken on a bit of a life of its own by illustrating so adeptly the art of earnestly saying nothing at all—a skill that much of modern popular country has nearly perfected.

Set to the same formulaic drum beat that plagues just about everything in the mainstream, and featuring redundant lyrics that work really hard to not go anywhere, it takes a lot of wit and skill to make a song sound this stupid. And luckily, Dustin Christensen possesses them. Radio country’s rabid obsession with trucks and lakes knows no bounds, and since complaining about it doesn’t seem to have put a dent in the trend, perhaps illustrating it in song will.

You can sometimes feel sorry for mainstream listeners when you hear what passes for a “deep” song. Often it’s simply the chord structure that makes it sound meaningful, when actually listening to the lyrics reveals there’s not much there. Christensen is just trying to be funny here and not openly trying to insult anybody. But beyond being an enjoyable exercise in how silly popular country can be, “Parked By The Lake” makes you appreciative of the gifts bestowed by so many of your favorite artists who disregard the commerce involved in music, and just try to put their important experiences in songs that remind us of our own.

77 Comments

albert
February 8, 2018 @
8:46 am

Makes you wonder how long it would take for listeners to catch on and phone in to their favourite country station when this came on ? I’m pretty sure none would change the station ….and it wouldn’t surprise me if most didn’t notice at all .

C’mon carter ……a girl in cut-offs rapping to eminem ? …everybody knows that’s not a country song lyric .
And I guess she’s dancing in a truck bed in the moonlight by a bonfire all fired up on ‘shine ?
Yeah …right . And I’ve got some ocean front property in Arizona I’ll be happy to sell you .
I didn’t just fall off a turnip truck you know . Eminem ……sheesh…..

Minimalism Albert! It’s genius on the same wavelength as Stella, Malevich and perhaps Warhol! Think about it. A lake can evoke so much metaphoricaly speaking. The depth of the lake, the fish in the lake, the location evoke the spirit of the human soul, man’s innate need for solice, comfort in nature, inner struggle, hopelessness, optimism, relationships, life, death.
Not to mention there’s a truck involved! A vehicle symbolic of escape, mobility, or futility. Maybe he ran out of gas, maybe it’s symbolic of his relationship that is stalled and going nowhere and he is left with despondency and is now looking at his own reflection in the water and seeing it as flawed, distorted. He sees he is aging much like the battered truck which is now a symbol of his failed existence.
And it’s near Santa Fe! Oh what that evokes!
Genius I tell you. On par with any of the great songwriters. Song of the year, maybe decade!

“C’mon carter ……a girl in cut-offs rapping to eminem ? …everybody knows that’s not a country song lyric .”
False. “My Girl” by Dylan Scott actually has the line “I love it when she raps to an Eminem song”.

Albert was being sarcastic, and that’s the song I was referring to. When I first heard the song I thought “What country music fan even knows who Eminem is?” then I realized that considering the state of “country” music probably more than I realized.

This song isn’t exactly what you’re portraying here. The basis of this song is a running studio joke between him and his band. They take the first line of a song and try to repeat it in different ways to the melody of the original song. In this case it’s the first line to his song “Vacant Motel Heart”. It was never meant to get outside the studio but it leaked and spread until Jake Owen showed it Bobby Bones who then played it on his show which led to the artist calling the show to tell the story of the song. That being said, when I first heard it prior to the artists explanation, I felt the same way you described in this article.

I knew that was coming lol. My kids like the show when I take them to school and it’s better than the other country stations morning show here. However this does not mean I’m a fan of him or the shit music he plays and defends. I just happened to be listening the morning they played this song and got the artist to call in. The sacrifices we make for our children knows no bounds.

Haha this is great! I’ve listened to it all morning. Sad thing is it’s still better than the majority of songs on the radio. It’s weirdly catchy as hell and kinda strikes an early summer road trip vibe. I dig it!

Needs a girl in cutoff jeans, sliding into a truck on 35s with KC lights, driving down a dirt road sippin on sweet tea, or Muscadine wine, singing along to the radio. Then you have to drop the tailgate when you get to the lake with a bonfire.

Wait…is the title of song “Parked By The Lake”…or “Parked OUT By The Lake”?!
Ok…who cares! A future classic! CMA Song of the year! CMA Single of the Year!
Beats all the busbee, Copperman or Gorley dreck.

now I no yud rather by a prius than have a truck given to u rd but if its good enuff for toby its good enuff for me and my favrut part of his I wanna talk about me video is win they bring out the hores

I thought it was funny for like the first three times he repeated it but then it just got annoying. I know it was supposed to be funny but it got boring quick. Prefer my humor in song from Wheeler Walker Jr. or Dean Brody when he does “Your Cousin”, “Mountain Mam”, or “Sweet Lola”.

I like this website and overlook the things I don’t agree with for that sake, but I think it’s funny you chose to say this release was “random” instead of giving any credit to Bobby Bones for playing this on his show about 20+ times last week and getting Dustin Christensen on the phone. This article and the release of this song would’ve never happened had he not thought the song was hilarious and a joke to the whole tailgates & tanlines cluster that is mainstream country radio today. I know you dislike him, but you know what goes on in the music world and I’d be very surprised if this was actually “random” to you and that you didn’t know it was getting airplay on the BBS.

I found this song on Twitter when Jason Isbell’s guitar player Sadler Vaden posted it days ago. I might be guilty for being ignorant, but I’m not guilty of trying to avoid giving credit to Bobby Bones for some reason. Had no idea Bobby Bones was behind this song because I don’t listen to his show, or pay attention to what he does, and certainly didn’t hear about it from him. Not surprised he’s somehow trying to give himself credit for discovering it though. I just thought it was a funny song and wanted to share it.

I totally understand. You’re usually always in the know inside and outside the mainstream country scene so I assumed you knew it had gotten air time last week (or the week before, can’t remember). That is on me for assuming. Christensen did also get recognized for writing IMO the only good song on Dustin Lynch’s newest record “Love Me or Leave Me Alone” so that’s good for him.

Side note: I still selfishly wish you had reviewed the Travis Meadows record last year. It was my favorite of 2017.

Iris has had two husbands, the second being singer songwriter Greg Brown. Prine’s pairing with Dement is the classic version of the song and they play well off each other. But they were never married. Too bad though, the kids from that potential pairing would have written some great songs.

Today I tried to listen to the last Lee Brice album and wanted to issue a warning to all . Don’t .

This guy is surely working off a ransom note from Music Row . ” If you ever want to see your friends and family again ……” kinda thing. Holy Jesus this thing sucks top to bottom . Any and every concession to trend has been included …….the rap vocal thing , the lyric touchstones , the beats , the themes …errr…scratch that …there are no themes . Just non -stop ” Is this what you want me to sing ” pandering.

I can’t believe this guy got to record ” I Drive Your Truck ” . How the hell is that possible much less
fair ?

Hmmmmmm …I usually feel better getting this kinda thing off my chest but I just feel like I wanna listen to Parked By The Lake a dozen times and zone out .Its a far more harmless listening experience

Ha Ha!
I don’t mind my humor wrapped up in a big dose of irony!
One reason this seems to hit the nail on the head is: I feel I’ve heard this song (the phrasing, the instrumentation, the arrangements, etc. etc.) at least a thousand times before.
An ironic reminder that so much of what pop/country offers is from a template that practically never changes.

I agree. It’s like it just keeps reproducing itself over and over again. One clone of another song is born over and over again, like it will never end. Though there has been some good country organ music that’s been donated to other genres, and it sounds great. I don’t think enough is borrowed from country music, it possibly could save the life of some good music, actually letting it live longer, it does seem to be dying too young. Some musical parts of Bro Country music could be farmed to supplement longer lives of other genres. We might appreciate it more and it could relieve a lot of problems. I just don’t want it to die. I love it. AND it could help other genres to experience the benefits of living longer through country’s donation to it. I don’t know, it’s just an idea worth spinning around.

The thing is, often pro songwriters write these type of songs because they know popular country is ridiculous too, and then they present some back story to give them plausible deniability for talking down the industry. I’m not denying how they wrote it, but they knew exactly what they ended up with.

Kt – agree with you on the Travis Meadows comment. First Cigarette is on heavy rotation in my house. If you haven’t seen the movie Wheeler, check it out. Travis has a nice small part in it, playing himself. It’s not an awesome movie, but definitely worth a viewing / listening IMO.

If you all want to improve country music,you all first have to improve radio, and the only way to do that is to start writing your Congressperson/senator and tell them to get rid of this current version of the 1933 telecommunications act and bring back the original one; the 1996 one made sure that Clear Channel/iHeart, Infinity and others were able to buy up each and every radio station in a given area, fire all of the staff, and then replace them and whatever they did with banks of computers and syndicated programs from elsewhere. Only then will country improve.